The families of two of the three Yosemite National Park visitors who were swept off Vernal Fall on July 16 are still in limbo.

While the body of 22-year-old Hormiz David was found in the Merced River 17 days after the tragic incident, the families of the other two – 21-year-old Ramina Tara Badal of Manteca, and 27-year-old Ninos Yacoub of Turlock – are still anxiously awaiting the final word on their loved ones.

The latest update on the Ramina Badal Family’s official web site was an entry made on Oct. 19.

“Today marks three months since the incident and Ramina, Ninos have yet to be found. Our families are still in need of your prayers,” reads the family’s statement.

Immediately below that message is the Scripture passage, “Rejoicing in hope, patient in prayer, continuing steadfastly in prayer. Romans 12:12.”

Along with that message is an entry titled “Hero” by Metra Azar-Salem describing what she saw on that fateful day. Azar-Salem contacted the Manteca Bulletin to share with the Badal family “what a hero their daughter was” for trying to pull out of the water the man who fell in first.

“I did not see the third person fall in as I was fixated on Ramina and Ninos. From the moment they fell in the water to the time they reached the fall their faces were in peace. They did not call out or scream, or look frightened in any way,” reads part of the account written by Azar-Salem who, along with her family, made the effort to meet with the Badal family on their way back home to Orange County, and to visit the church in Ceres where the three young people were actively involved.

The three were part of a youth group from St. George Parish in Ceres who went on a hiking trip to Yosemite on July 19. The church is part of the Diocese of California of the Assyrian Church of the East.

The web site also contains photographs of Ramina Badal and her family, as well as her biography which reads in part: “Known to be a very generous and selfless person by her family and friends, Ramina had found her calling in aspiring to become a nurse. Over the years she has given up her room for World Relief immigrants, sang Christmas carols for the elderly with fellow classmates, donated nearly two feet of her hair to Locks of Love, volunteered at the Salvation Army homeless shelter, and donated blood regularly at the Delta Blood Bank.”

The entry continues, “She began to play the flute at the age of eight and has performed in many concerts, orchestras, and for choirs – mainly the St. George Parish choir where she attends church every Sunday. She was an honor student all throughout elementary school, high school, and continues to do well in college at the University of San Francisco where she studies Nursing. Her passions include (but are not limited to) volunteering her spare time at St. George parish, music, and photography.”

Hormiz David was a student at Modesto Junior College where he was studying music production. Yacoub was a chemistry student at California State University, Stanislaus.

To access the Ramina Badal Family web site, log on to the Badal Facebook page at http://facebook.com/raminabadalfamily then scroll down and click on the family web site.